The Department of Energy (DOE)-Visayas Field Office on Wednesday, August 12, announced a 15-day price freeze for household liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in cylinders and kerosene products in Bacolod City.
The directive cited the Bacolod City Council Resolution 887 passed on Aug. 5, declaring a state of calamity amid the red-striped soft scale insect (RSSI) infestation in the city’s sugarcane farms.
The price freeze, valid for 15 days – from Aug. 6 to 20 – will implement prices used before the implementation of the state of calamity.
“Any rollback of prices, however, shall be implemented while price increases are strictly prohibited within the 15-day period counted from the day of the state of calamity implementation,” the DOE-Visayas said in its public advisory.
For household LPG, the price freeze covers 11-kg cylinders and below.
On Aug. 4, Mayor Greg Gasataya sent an urgent letter-request to the City Council, stating that the infestation has compromised 2,000 hectares or 65.45 percent of the 3,056 hectares planted with sugarcane in Bacolod.
The City Agriculture Office certified an estimated total damage of PHP200 million caused by the infestation.
Affected were 350 sugarcane farmers and 2,000 farm workers, with a total farm area of around 2,000 hectares*PNA
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